Busted star Matt Willis is to open up about his battle with drugs and alcohol in a raw BBC documentary which airs this week.
The musician, 40, seemingly has it all; a successful career, a happy marriage to TV presenter Emma Willis and he's a doting dad to three children. But behind closed doors he has been fighting his addictions, working hard to stay clean and sober.
In the hour-long programme, Matt examines his history with substance abuse and talks about how he constantly lives in fear of relapse. His darker days will also be uncovered, as he meets fellow addicts and health experts to better understand the causes of addiction.
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The star revisits the rehab unit where he spent four weeks in 2008, leaving clean and sober just before his wedding. Support from wife Emma as well as his bandmates, friends and family is also documented.
It will delve into the impact it has had on Emma, who appears close to tears in the film as she tells of her unease that he will relapse again.
The Busted singer spoke to The One Show hosts Alex Jones and Jermaine Jenas about the documentary earlier this week. On the impact of his addiction on Emma, Matt told them: "In the early days in our relationship things were really kind of up and down.
"With this documentary, we really went there and talked about some stuff we have never spoken about. With addiction everything can become so focused on the addict and you forget the ripple effect that addiction has on the people that love them and the impact it has on them.
"Emma was amazing, I had to talk her into being on it but once she was in it she opened up."
Matt said the documentary made the couple “realise that we still had some talking to do” and admitted that therapy has proven beneficial in understanding his compulsions and feeling compassion for his younger self.
Speaking to the Radio Times he added: “I was young, and I was always the one taking it way further than I should have. The number of blackout moments (due to drinking) I had even up to the age of 20 was huge.”
Referring to an interview on The Jonathan Ross Show more than two decades ago, he said: “That was hardest for me to watch because I’m looking at myself and I’m 20 years old or something and I’m obviously off my face.
“It’s not rock ‘n’ roll, it wasn’t glamorous, it was really sad.”
Matt added that although the programme is “nerve-wracking”, he hopes it reminds viewers that status, wealth and age are no barriers to addiction.
Matt Willis: Fighting Addiction airs on BBC One on Wednesday, May 17 at 9pm. It will also be available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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